Call it 鈥渢axation without transportation.鈥� University of Victoria and Camosun College students pay for mandatory bus passes as part of their student fees, but they are often left clutching those passes as fully loaded buses drive by.
It鈥檚 the season of 鈥減ass-ups,鈥� when demand is so heavy that passengers on the popular routes to Camosun and UVic watch in frustration while one or more buses drive by because the drivers can鈥檛 take any more people.
If you鈥檙e trying to keep to a schedule, missing a bus can mean missing a class. That鈥檚 why student groups at both institutions were demonstrating with politicians and union leaders this week as part of a campaign called Make Transit Work.
In September of last year, about 16,000 passengers were left behind, according to campaign organizers.
The situation gets worse the closer you are to UVic and Camosun鈥檚 Lansdowne campus. Students who live within a few kilometres of campus on the main routes frequently find the buses are full.
This year, B.C. Transit has added 5,000 service hours, with four buses standing by on weekdays to rush to overloaded routes.
Make Transit Work wants to see a higher gas tax in Victoria to fund improved service; the New Democratic Party says the province should increase its share of funding; the Ministry of Transportation says its contribution is already the highest in Canada.
Throwing money at the problem is the usual recommendation from those who don鈥檛 have to do the gritty work of raising the money.
But pass-ups have been a problem for years, and it has to be fixed. The students have no choice about buying their passes; they deserve to get the service they are paying for.
